Josè D’Alessandro has grown some of the world's most iconic brands, including Coca-Cola, Sprite, Uncle Ben’s, Knorr, Pirelli, Dunlop, Vespa, and MotoGuzzi across the world, living in 5 countries and coordinating up to 48, with an uncommon ability to work in multicultural and multilingual environments. He has managed innovation, turnarounds, marketing, sales and new market entries, in FMCG, semi-durable goods and automotive, his roles ranging from marketing manager to Business Unit director with full P&L, factory and R&D responsibility. Last position before joining BEN was Executive VP, Europe for Piaggio. He speaks at many universities and conferences and is a regular teacher on General Management, Negotiation & Sales at the Publitalia ’80 Marketing, Sales and Communication MBA in Milan. Passionate about other cultures, books and sports, he loves travelling, reading, writing and rollerblading. He thinks he speaks Italian, French, English, and German, and people are kind enough to let him believe so. He lives in Brussels with his wife and sons.

Suhas Apte is a senior executive who has developed a valuable global perspective, extensive CPG industry experience and sustainability credentials based on a broad career path working in Asia-Pacific, developing markets, Europe and the United States. Suhas held several executive positions at the Kimberly-Clark Corp., a $20 billion company with three global businesses, including: Global Sustainability Officer - instrumental in developing and implementing the global enterprise’s ambitious Sustainability vision, strategies & programs, President of Family Care Europe - had P&L responsibility ($1.8B) for the Consumer Tissue businesses (Kleenex®, Andrex®, and Scottex® brands) in 18 markets and as Vice President of Emerging Markets - shared P&L responsibility ($1.8B) for the for K-C’s Baby & Child Care businesses (Huggies® brand) in 30+ countries. Suhas is on the board of social NGO Global Giving, which features 1800+ pre-screened projects in 120 countries, and enables client companies build a philanthropy strategy that matches their corporate mission and provides innovative solutions for corporate philanthropy in: grant management, cause marketing or employee giving programs. He is on the board of EPI bread company, an industry leader serving large national restaurant chains, grocers and distributors, as well as on the board of two entrepreneurial NGO’s - TiE Atlanta which fosters and promotes entrepreneurship; and Atlanta Green Chamber which promoted green investments and jobs in Atlanta. He is a Mechanical Engineer from India, with MBA from University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business.

Mona Das is a super-connector, catalyst, entrepreneur, and global citizen. She has led numerous, successful B2B and B2C sales programs in the internet and communications technology industries with a number of high-profile clients including MasterCard, HP, AT&T, IBM and Intel. Mona has a natural gift for inspiring and connecting people leading to excellence as a sales professional. She spent eight years as a sales executive for a variety of software companies in Portland OR, and Dublin Ireland. For the past eight years she has been running her own mortgage business, which combines her passion for helping people and exceptional customer service. Mona graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a degree in Psychology and earned her MBA in Sustainable Business from Bainbridge Graduate Institute (BGI) in 2012. At BGI Mona learned to embrace her voice, lead by example and inspire others to change the world. She aspires to be a inspirational speaker and loves when her friends tell her they have been “MONAvated”! She was recently appointed as a member of the Multnomah County Advisory Committee on Sustainability and Innovation and has served on the Budget Committee for The Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability.

Charles Edwards is an inspirational leader, iconic brand development facilitator, and organizational change agent with solid experience leading operations in large corporate, NGO, entrepreneurial, academic, and NPO sectors. He has led major business turnaround initiatives over his 25 year IBM career. After IBM, Charles served as Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer of the 1996 Paralympic Games and achieved the strongest financial and spectator results in the history of the Paralympic Games. Charles has also led successful initiatives as Co-CEO of an Internet technology venture, and Assistant Dean for Corporate Relations at the GSU Robinson College of Business. Most recently, he led the merger of two NPO’s and served as the inaugural President & CEO of the new organization to establish its brand, and launch its strategic plan. Charles grew up in Detroit, is a veteran, and earned bachelor’s industrial engineering (IE) and MBA degrees from the University of Michigan, and master’s IE from Wayne State University. He and his bride of 30+ years have four children and three wonderful grandchildren.

Benjamin Erben has over 20 years of experience in the design industry. With a degree in communication design he worked within international design agencies in Germany and London for clients such as Star Alliance, Deutsche Post and Sony, before setting up his own company ICONIC in London (in 2003). Benjamin has a strong corporate design background. Over the past 10 years his interest expanded into the strategic development of brands. Therefore, distilling and articulating a brand’s promise – before communicating and designing the brand (Iconic approach: reason meets imagination). During his career he has gained insight into a multitude of different industries, from aviation, automotive, hospitality, telecoms, law, professional services to museums, health and charities. His experience ranges from start ups to blue chip clients. Benjamin has worked on projects in over 17 countries. Thankfully he likes travelling. He is driven by a strong belief – ‘that there is a better way of doing things'. He is passionate about creating powerful brands, about timeless design, about the Arts, writing, travelling and football. Benjamin lives in London and Berlin.

Nandini Gulati has over 20 years of advertising and international marketing communications experience. She has lived and worked in New Delhi, Mumbai, Atlanta, Hong Kong and London. Her work took her to East and West Europe, Africa, Middle East, Asia, South America, Japan and Australia. In early 2006 she relocated back to Gurgaon, India where she lives now. In her last assignment as Integrated Marketing Communications Head for Europe and Middle East based in London, she worked towards introducing a new model of marketing at the Coca-Cola Company. She has trained over 600 senior executives. Nandini has spoken at various international forums including Marketing Week Europe, London Business School, and MIP in Cannes. She was featured among “40 (professionals) under 40” to watch in Europe in a cover story in Media and Marketing Magazine. Nandini conducts professional skills and integrated marketing communication trainings. With her background as a trained Neuro-Linguistic Programming master practitioner and spiritual psychotherapist she is interested in new scientific findings in the areas of health and mental well-being. She is a keen wildlife enthusiast, practices yoga and volunteers for an NGO, Jamghat involved in rehabilitating street children from Old Delhi.

Udaiyan Jatar (U.J.) has led global businesses like the $400 million joint venture between Coca-Cola and Nestle and launched many products across 6 continents. His innovation career spans 20 years in companies like Coca-Cola, P&G and Grey where he led the launches of brands like Pantene, Vicks, Sprite, Powerade, Nestea and Honda in different parts of the world. As Coke’s Global Vice-President for coffee, he created and launched a high margin business in 2006, Far Coast, which sells 100% Fair Trade etc. certified coffees. This is the first such brand launched by a Fortune 100 company. It is also a Carbon Neutral business. He teaches marketing at the Bainbridge Graduate Institute (#2 Sustainable MBA program in the USA), Social Enterprise at GSU, and is on the Board of Georgia Center for Nonprofits. He is frequently invited to speak or share his expertise at events like the Presidential Summit for Entrepreneurship, Net Impact, etc. He is a Test Cricket fanatic, loves to read about Physics and Philosophy and lives in Atlanta in the USA with his wife and children.

Todd Kirk has focused of turning data into actionable marketing programs for more than 25 years. This work attracts more customers, increases their buying rate, and presents unmatched value that can command higher prices. Over the course of his career, he has held senior positions at both research/consulting organizations like SymphonyIRI Group and client/manufacturer firms like The Coca-Cola Company. During the last 5 years, Todd has channeled this experience into launching several successful start-up companies to commercialize different state-of-the-art technologies for marketing analytics. His formal training was at Miami University’s Farmer School of Business and the Australian Graduate School of Management. After almost a decade in Greater New York City, Todd and his family (wife Noreen and son Aodan) recently returned to Atlanta, GA. However, his pursuit of to help clients do better things as opposed to just do things better through marketing analytics regularly takes him to the four corners of the world.

L. Hunter Lovins is President and founder of the Natural Capitalism Solutions (NCS). Hunter’s areas of expertise include Natural Capitalism, sustainable development, globalization, energy and resource policy, economic development, climate change, land management, and fire rescue and emergency medicine. Lovins has consulted with large and small companies including the International Finance Corporation, Royal Dutch Shell, Interface, Clif Bar, and Wal-Mart. Governmental clients include the Pentagon, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy and other agencies, numerous cities, and the governments of Jamaica, Australia, and the U.S. She has also served an advisor to the Energy Minister of the Government of Afghanistan. Recipient of such honors as the Right Livelihood Award, Lindbergh Award and Leadership in Business, she was named Time Magazine 2000 Hero of the Planet and in 2009 Newsweek dubbed her a “Green Business Icon.” She has co-authored nine books and hundreds of papers, including the 1999 book, Natural Capitalism, 2006 e-book Climate Protection Manual for Cities, and the 2009 Transforming Industry in Asia. Trained as a sociologist and lawyer (JD), Hunter is also currently faculty at Bainbridge Graduate Institute. She was a founding Professor of Business at Presidio Graduate School, one of the first accredited programs offering an MBA in Sustainable Management and is currently Chief Insurgent of the madrone project.

Gifford Pinchot III is a well-known author (Intrapreneuring in Action), and is credited for inventing the term by Norman Macrae in a 1982 article in the Economist. Gifford helps clients launch businesses and manage innovation. He has helped to launch over 700 businesses, several of which are each doing over a billion dollars in sales. He has also built four companies, sold three of them, one of which created an astounding return of over 10,000 percent for the original investors. Since 1983 Mr. Pinchot’s clients have included half of the “Fortune 100”, and numerous government and nonprofit organizations as well as clients on every continent except Antarctica. Gifford Pinchot is the President and co-founder of the Bainbridge Graduate Institute, which offers an MBA that integrates sustainability and social responsibility with innovation and profit. Mr. Pinchot graduated with honors from Harvard University in 1965 with an A.B. degree in economics, then completed his coursework for a Ph.D. in neurophysiology at Johns Hopkins University.

Kevin Wilhelm is the pre-eminent business consultant in the field of sustainability and climate change. He is the CEO of Sustainable Business Consulting, a Seattle based consulting firm focused on practical solutions that deliver profit improvement through the use of sustainable business practices. Kevin brings over sixteen years of experience working with businesses ranging from Fortune 500 multinationals to government agencies to renewable energy start-ups. Some of his clients include Nordstrom, REI, The North Face, Coinstar/Redbox, Drugstore.com and Brooks Sports. His firm works with companies to measure their sustainability and carbon impacts, develop successful implementation goals and strategies, engage employees through sustainability training, and help them communicate their CSR efforts both internally and externally. He has spent the last eight years demonstrating the business & bottom line benefits of sustainability locally, nationally, and internationally. He is the author of the acclaimed: Return on Sustainability: How Business Can Increase Profitability & Address Climate Change in an Uncertain Economy. He is an adjunct professor at the Bainbridge Graduate Institute where he teaches Sustainable Business.